Why we're bringing Waldorf home.

I have been dragging my feet about sending Dylan to preschool for a year. I have looked around and thought about it a lot, but now he's almost 3 and a half, and I still haven't found what I'm looking for. What am I looking for? A Waldorf Preschool. Even a once a week thing would be great, but I haven't been able to find that. When it comes to my children, I know what I want and I won't take less than that. There's Montessori, but they don't focus much on imaginative play and even less on fantasy. I think it's important for my children to have a magical childhood. I believe that it will help them begin their journey with a far less cynicism toward their world and environment. **See this link for a (slightly biased) comparison of Waldorf and Montessori.** Most important, I don't want to send Dylan to school. He's three. I have this amazing opportunity to stay home with him, KNOW him like nobody else can, guide him, and share my days with him. We can weavewaldorf philosophy and rythm into our life, and Jupe and I will experience the magic and wonder with Dylan and Molly.

So. We've started a Waldorf Preschool routine at our house. We've been at it for a week, and it's very busy, fun and exhausting. Each day this week has been so full of meaningful things! I love the routine. We have circle time with a candle each morning, and after the morning verse, Dylan insists on his new favorite story, "The three Billy Goats Gruff" in which I use 3 pinecones as goats, a knotty stick as a troll, and a curved piece of bark as a bridge over a blue-silk stream. He loves the candle, and loves the lighting of it almost as much as when he gets to blow it out! He hasn't mastered sitting still around the candle, so I have to stop the story fairly often to keep him from flailing into the candle in "fear" when the troll comes out from under the bridge and roars! :)

Dylan helps me with everything from folding laundry to sweeping and vacuuming, and the best new habit I'm starting? Getting him to wash his own dishes every time he's finished eating. Even snack! And the great part about it is that he really likes it. He says he's done, so I tell him it's time to wash his dishes. He dumps his plate in the trash (he actually got mad at Jupe for eating his leftovers today because it "goes in the trash!" heh. and then we pull a chair over to the sink and he washes. He usually wants to play for about 15 minutes at the sink too, so I try to leave time for that before we have to go anywhere.

Okay, we're working on making DYlan wooden log-pieces and staffs to play with, so we need to go outside. I'll put up some pictures of our adventures soon.

I'll leave you with a link to the most helpful Waldorf Resource Site I've found, Waldorfhomeschoolers.com. I'm still wading through the wonderful articles and I find something inspiring there every day!

Katie